Penydarren - Trevithick's Steam Locomotive (1804)

Kit Manufacturer: Minicraft Model (U.S.A)

Major Material: Plastic

Model Specifications: 1:38 Scale

Work Experience: Except the brass piston and control rods, and the wheel shafts, this is a whole plastic kit. The assembly instruction is clear and easy to follow. However, to make it looks more like the real thing instead of a cheap plastic toy, I have practiced all of the painting techniques that I known (air brushing, washing, dry brushing) on this kit. The display board is scratch built.

Historical Notes:
Richard Trevithick is not exactly a houshold name, yet this relatively obscure English inventor and engineer was responsible for one of the most important of all inventions -- the first steam locomotive.
In 1795, when he was only 25 years old, Trevithick was building working models of high-pressure steam engines. One of his early engines powered carts used in 1800 by Welsh and Cornish coal miners and, in 1804, his first steam locomotive, the Penydarren, was inveiled.
The most revolutionary feature of Trevithick's 1804 locomotive was the fact that it had smooth wheels operating on smooth metal rails. Until Trevithick's breakthrogh, engineers has said it was impossible to achieve sufficient traction without using gear-like wheels on a slotted track. Trevithick also devised a method of drafting the firebox, via a smokestack, which has been used on steam locotives ever since.
While its maiden journey was on a small circular track in london, the 1804 Trevithick later hauled 70 mem, 20 tons of iron and 5 wagons over 9.5 miles of track at the breakneck speed of 5 miles per hour.
After the success of his steam locomotive, Trevithick applied his abilities to harness steam as a source of power to rock-boring, dredging and agriculture. He died in 1833. (From Minicraft Model) More Information